U.S. District Judge Paul Grewal in San Jose ruled that the federal government violated U.S. environmental law by declining to perform an environmental impact study on fracking in the Monterey Formation.

Fracking is the injection of pressurized sand, water, and chemicals into shale formations, triggering the release of oil and natural gas. It's not a new method of extraction, but combining it with horizontal drilling has taken onshore U.S. energy to a new level.

The problem is, fracking could have a negative impact on the environment -- especially fracking on groundwater. Environmentalists also say that fracking doesn't help the greenhouse gas situation, which scientists say is responsible for global warming.

The Obama administration is interested in two tracts of land on the Monterey Shale Formation (a huge bed of sedimentary rock in Monterey County, California). The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that there are over 15 billion barrels of oil in the 2,500 acres designated for drilling in the Monterey Formation.

While a combination of fracking and horizontal drilling is the best way to retrieve the oil, the Obama administration leased the land without conducting the proper environmental impact study. Hence, the judge has ordered that all drilling be suspended until a plan of action is submitted and accepted.

"The potential risk for contamination from fracking, while unknown, is not so remote or speculative to be completely ignored," Grewal wrote.

Just last month, a team of scientists said oil waste caused a record Oklahoma earthquake (5.7 magnitude) that occurred in 2011. The team said this was uncharacteristic of this area, and that fracking creates seismic instability and may contaminate local water supplies.

However, paid-off politicians are working to keep fracking alive in the area because it generates a load of cash.

Another study in 2012 said the same thing. The U.S. Geological Survey reports that for the three decades until the year 2000, seismic events across the middle of the nation averaged only 21 per year. Then in 2009, events increased to 50 per year. They then jumped to 87 per year in 2010 and then 134 in 2011. Some are pointing to fracking as the reason for the increase in seismic events across the middle of the United States.

It's funny how Obama can drill for oil, and skip the environmental impact assessment, yet the story goes completely unreported in the mainstream news. You won't see it on the evening news when you go home tonight, since Big-O is the media darling.

W, on the other hand, would have been blasted on every news station, with "expert" guest speakers and talking heads all lambasting the evil Bush administration for their environmental neglect, and wanton and illegal destruction of the environment.

The administration was just trying to ignore California's strict environmental regulations to quickly and efficiently open up economic opportunities for private industry.

Sounds like what you conservatives have clamoring about for years. I applaud to Obama administration for clearing a path through the bureaucracy in order to get this country back on its way energy independence, and ultimately freedom.

Yeah, it is pretty stupid and just shows how contrived the Obama hate is...if (or when - with restrictions on lawsuits against liabilities for damages from fracking) Bush's admin did stuff like this it was great. But when Obama's admin does it it's some kind of 'mainstream media' conspiracy. wtf?

Why not call a thing good or bad based on the thing rather than the source. I guess conservatives find the inside of gift horse's mouths very interesting.

Well that's the irony of it. Kind of like how Republicans get caught with their pants down, literally, in mischievous sexual affairs...while touting to speak for the conservative "family values" masses. Democrats don't run on such a platform so it's okay for them to be cheats and sex maniacs, from Clinton on down.

We have Obama essentially doing the same thing from a conservative/Republican side now. He is doing things against what he ran as and stood for in the liberal masses. And the media isn't calling him out on it, nor are his followers.

Oh and one other thing: the "Obama hate" whining is getting rather old. Just because we disagree with the man does not mean we "hate" him any more than it means we are a "racist" against him. Grow up, liberals.

Obama may have spoken more about alternative energy during the campaign, but his position has really always been one of utilizing all energy sources. The reason he seems so 'far left' to so many people is because they are so far right that even moderate positions are far left to them.

It spun to sound like a political blunder. The Obama administration did not approve this. This was approved by the Department of the Interior and the president probably did not even see it or hear about it.

If anything, out of every president, obama is the most pro-environment and anti-fracking. The USGS national research program will actually receive funding for the first time to research fracking. Obama actually specifically asked for this. This is going to be a big project for the USGS NRP in FY 2014.How do I know? I work here at the DOI USGS NRP EB in Reston VA

Yeah funny isn't it, fracking is a man made disaster & yet here in America there is no such thing as global warming! I guess loads of sheeple don't like to crack their head watching hours of documentary besides the fact that it portrays their favorite gas guzzlers as modern abomination aka "Teufel in Menschengestalt" /end rant.